When you think of coffee competitions, you might wonder what that has to do with the final coffee you sip at a cafe. Competitions such as The World Barista Championships have a great influence on the cafe scene.
What is The World Barista Championships?
The World Barista Championship is an annual competition in which a barista serves four espressos, a four milk-based drink and four signature drinks within fifteen minutes, all whilst delivering insights and ideas to a panel of judges and the coffee community. These judges will score each barista on taste, tactile experiences and technical skills.
How the WBC shapes the coffee experience at a cafe level.
The World Barista Championships shine a spotlight on quality and innovation, which has resulted in competitors seeking out the finest beans. As a result, the prominence of single-origin coffees at a cafe level can be credited to the World Barista Championships, as well as the rise of experimental and unique processing methods.
Both competitors and brand sponsors of the World Barista Championships debut their latest equipment at the championships, which then has the potential to inspire cafe owners to adopt it in-store. With the use of state-of-the-art technology at a cafe level, baristas can now emulate precision at a WBC-level. You can thank the WBC for the now widely used techniques, such as weighing dosage and yield to create brew ratios, as well as specific grinding equipment that is now widely available throughout cafes.
One of the key elements of The World Barista Championships is taste descriptors, and competitors are scored on their accuracy of these descriptions. The language we use to describe our coffees at a cafe level has been influenced by the World Barista Championships. You’ve likely even seen these taste descriptors used in most cafes and roasters to describe their single-origin coffees on brew cards.
The Signature Drink component of the competition sequence, where baristas pair world-class coffees with unique ingredients to elevate the flavours in the cup, has inspired baristas and cafes to experiment and introduce unique menu offerings.
Inspired by the World Barista Championships, we’re driven to continue raising the bar across our cafes as we reshape the conversation around the fact that the WBC is not just a competition and that the profession of a barista is a skilled and celebrated art and profession.
Inspired by the World Barista Championships, we’re driven to continue raising the bar across our cafes as we reshape the conversation around the fact that the WBC is not just a competition and that the profession of a barista is a skilled and celebrated art and profession.
